Taliban: Afghan surge will mean more US fatalities

President Barack Obama's plan to send 30,000 new U.S. troops to Afghanistan will only lead to more American casualties, the Taliban vowed.

The insurgency said in a statement Wednesday that the Obama administration's plan was "no solution for the problems of Afghanistan" and would give the Taliban an opportunity "to increase their attacks and shake the American economy, which is already facing crisis."

If conditions are right, Obama said, U.S. forces could begin leaving Afghanistan in 18 months. Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. commander in the country, said Wednesday that the Afghan government and its international partners should …